Billiards Shot Training Device and Method

ABSTRACT

A measurement device ( 16 ) and method for analyzing a billiards shot using an accelerometer ( 25 ) for generating acceleration data, an indication system ( 24 ), a microprocessor ( 26 ) for calculating statistical data, a power source ( 22 ), and a housing ( 20 ). The device ( 16 ), when powered, detects when the player has struck a billiards ball with a billiards cue. The microprocessor ( 26 ) then acquires acceleration data from the accelerometer ( 25 ) and outputs a signal if the data exceeds a predetermined threshold, thus alerting the player. The device ( 16 ) brings the player&#39;s attention to improper billiards cue movement, allowing the player to improve his or her stroke consistency.

CROSS REFERENCE TO OTHER PATENT APPLICATIONS

None.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

The apparatuses and methods disclosed herein relate generally to billiards games, and more particularly, to analyzing the movement of a billiards cue and presenting information on said movement to the player.

BACKGROUND

The game of billiards is a very difficult and demanding game requiring extreme focus on subtle details, including but not limited to object ball aiming, foresight of the cue ball path, stroke speed, and billiards cue tip position at impact. Many of these details are either not obvious to a player, or the player is aware of them but still fails to execute them consistently.

There are a number of devices which have been developed to help billiards players to improve their sense of awareness about how certain fundamental movements should feel and to commit these movements to their muscle memory.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,851,876, issued for Baker, for ‘Training Aid-Guide Device for Pool Cue appears to disclose a handheld guide for a billiards cue that aids in forming a proper bridge with the bridge hand (the hand touching the table). The device gradually transitions a new player, once experience is gained, into holding the cue in a more advanced state, approaching the hand position of an experienced player who does not employ such a training aid.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,053,153, issued for Josenhans, for ‘Billard-Bridge and Stroke Trainer is another device designed to assist a billiard player in forming a bridge, but instead focuses in helping the player evaluate and improve upon the straightness of his stroke. It is also a handheld guide that conforms to the bridge hand.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,267,685, issued for Cannon, for ‘Billiard Cue Stroke Guidance Aid is similar.

There have also been electronic systems, such as U.S. Pat. No. 6,217,450, issued for Meredith, for ‘Computerized Pool Cue. This device is held by the bridge hand similar to a track-ball mouse over which slides the billiards cue, and sends positional data to a screen. This device can be used to directly capture the characteristics of a player's stroke, or used as a simulator in communication with software to emulate a game of pool or billiards virtually.

The devices described above are generally designed to be held with the bridge hand and moved to different locations of the billiards table for each shot.

There are examples of devices which attempt to satisfy this need by attaching to the billiards cue and freeing up the bridge hand, such as U.S. Pat. No. 7,335,110, issued for Tucker, for ‘Billiards Shot Training Device. This device attaches to the ferrule of the billiards cue and includes two arms spaced by the width of a billiards ball, so that the arms will touch the cue ball and compromise the shot if the billiards cue is not precisely in line with the center of the cue ball. The intention is to teach the player through conditioning where the center of the cue ball spatially naps to their physiology and to develop muscle memory calibration to that spot.

Since the advent of microprocessors and accelerometers, there have been a number of training devices employing electronic systems with elements attached directly to the billiards cue. U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,783, issued for Matcovich, for ‘Sports Implement Swing Analyzer is a sports swing analyzer implementing accelerometers, a means for calculating characteristics for a swing, and displaying the characteristics on a remote display.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,544 issued for Kobayashi, for ‘Swing Analyzing Device employs at least two accelerometers spaced a known distance to calculate swing velocity of appropriate athletic equipment, and outputs both an audible tone and data to a display.

U.S. Pat. No. 8,645,085, issued for Morris, for ‘System and Method for Simulating a Billiard Cue Stroke includes accelerometers, a microprocessor, a wireless transmitter, and a remote display system to display three-axis acceleration data of the billiards stroke.

Further, U.S. Pat. No. 8,696,482, issued for Pedenko, for ‘Three Dimensional Golf Swing Analyzer is a device that attaches to a golf club, includes an accelerometer, a gyroscope, a multiple microprocessors, a wireless data transmitter and receiver, and metrics software used to help coach the player over many trials of golf swings.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

As noted above, there have been prior attempts to improve sports performance using training devices, but none is fully satisfactory. A consistent and proper billiards stroke requires a linear movement, whereas the dynamic structure of the human body, specifically the arm is non-linear. Therefore, a proper billiards stroke is best learned through stroke training.

A second issue arises where a player has formed the habit of anticipating the strike. The result is that the player unknowingly tenses muscle groups immediately before the billiards cue strikes the cue ball, causing the billiards cue to deviate from its intended linear path immediately before impact. This issue is hard to self-diagnose and causes inconsistency and frustration.

A third issue arises when a player has formed the habit of prematurely standing up, moving their body before the entire stroke is complete, steering the cue after the strike, or otherwise failing to keep their body significantly still during or after the strike. Many players develop the habit of jumping up or steering the cue immediately after the strike due to the anticipation of the cue ball or object ball leaving their immediate view. As the player tires and loses focus, he may begin to jump up or steer the cue slightly before the strike, causing the billiards cue to deviate from its intended linear path immediately before impact. The result is an unpredictable cue ball path and possibly a miss. These issues are challenging for an observer to detect and are difficult to fix by oneself. However, the effort it takes to become aware of and improve on these issues can be relieved with the assistance of proper billiards training devices or tools.

According to certain disclosed embodiments, the present disclosure relates to certain embodiments of devices for analyzing a billiards shot. Certain of these embodiments comprise:

-   -   a. a housing for attachment of the device to a billiards cue;     -   b. a power source in, or operably coupled to, the housing;     -   c. an accelerometer in the housing for generating acceleration         data from the billiards cue;     -   d. an indication system in the housing for presenting         statistical data to a billiards player, the statistical data         comprising at least one value that is a statistic of the motion         of the billiards cue after the billiards cue has impacted a         billiards ball;     -   e. a microprocessor in the housing coupled to both the         accelerometer and the indication system that inputs the         acceleration data, generates the statistical data from the         acceleration data, and outputs the statistical data to the         indication system,         whereby when after the billiards player causes the billiards cue         to strike the billiards ball, the statistical data is presented         to the billiards player via the indication system.

According to certain embodiments, the disclosed device may further comprise an impact detector for generating an impact signal when the billiards cue strikes a billiards ball. The impact detector may comprise a band pass filter centered at the resonant frequency of the accelerometer.

The impact detector tray further comprise at least one rectifier. The statistical data may further comprise at least one value that represents the time since the billiards cue last struck the billiards ball. The billiards ball may be a cue ball. The axis of the accelerometer may be aligned in parallel with the axial orientation of the billiards cue so that the acceleration data substantially coincides with the longitudinal acceleration of the billiards cue. The accelerometer may comprise three axes of acceleration. The indication system may comprise at least one light-emitting diode. The indication system may further comprise at least one audible tone generator. The indication system may further comprise at least one vibrating indicator. The statistical data may be compared to a threshold value. The housing is formed from a flexible material. The housing may be attached to the butt of the billiards cue. The device may further comprise a billiards cue. A recessed section of the billiards cue is used as the housing. According to certain embodiments, the device is of negligible weight.

According to certain embodiments, the device does not interfere with the billiard player's line-of-sight view. According to certain embodiments, the device does not interfere with the billiard player's range of motion during his stroke.

According to certain embodiments, the disclosure relates to a method for analyzing a billiards shot. The method comprises the steps of:

-   -   a. providing a billiards cue;     -   b. providing a housing;     -   c. providing an apparatus comprising:         -   i. a receptacle for a power source;         -   ii. an accelerometer for generating acceleration data from             the billiards cue;         -   iii. an indication system for presenting statistical data to             a billiards player, the statistical data comprising at least             one value that is a statistic of the motion of the billiards             cue after the billiards cue has impacted a billiards ball;         -   iv. a microprocessor coupled to both the accelerometer and             the indication system that inputs the acceleration data,             generates the statistical data from the acceleration data,             and outputs the statistical data to the indication system,     -   d. inserting a power source into the apparatus;     -   e. attaching the apparatus to the housing;     -   f. attaching the housing to the billiards cue;     -   g. striking the billiards ball with the billiards cue; and     -   h. presenting the statistical data via the indication system.

A device capable of detecting excess body movement and billiards cue steering is valuable because it frees the player from needing a third party or professional coach to indicate when he or she is potentially comprising their stroke with excess movement, and also validates any suspicions the player might have had about their stroke that were undetectable beforehand. Further, since the device helps the player learn to keep the billiards cue still after the strike, a secondary effect is that it also helps the player learn to keep his head and eyes still as well. When the head and eyes are still, the player will appreciate a higher level of visual focus and mental connection to the object ball than they did beforehand.

The present disclosure addresses certain challenges encountered in billiards, specifically the problem of detecting excess billiards cue movement. Particularly, a device that measures the acceleration of the billiards cue after impact with the cue ball, calculates statistics on the acceleration data, and presents a statistical value of that motion to the player alerting them to excess billiards cue movement.

Since it is very difficult to keep a billiards cue from moving in space while changing the position of one's body, the measure of movement of a billiards cue is a good measure of body movement. The device provides immediate feedback, freeing the player from needing a third party or professional coach to indicate when he or she is potentially compromising their stroke with excess movement, and also validates any suspicions the player might have had about their stroke that were difficult to detect beforehand.

Further, since the device helps the player learn to keep the billiards cue still after the strike, a secondary effect is to help the player learn to keep his head and eyes still as well. When the head and eyes are still, the player will appreciate a higher level of visual focus and mental connection to the object ball than they did beforehand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The disclosure will now be more particularly described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings. Novel features believed characteristic of the disclosed embodiments are set forth in the claims. For the purpose of illustrating the disclosure, certain embodiments are shown and described as examples. It should be understood, however, that the concepts disclosed herein are not limited to the precise arrangement and instrumentalities shown.

FIG. 1A shows an assembly front view of billiards cue and measurement device, consisting of a control board and a housing located near the butt end of the cue;

FIG. 1B shows a detailed assembly front view of the butt end of the billiards cue and measurement device;

FIG. 1C shows a detailed assembly back view of the butt end of the billiards cue and measurement device;

FIG. 2 shows a detailed assembly front view of an alternative embodiment of the measurement device, located near the butt end of the billiards cue with a recess cut into the cue;

FIG. 3A shows a side view of billiards ball and the front part of a billiards cue;

FIG. 3B shows a player's perspective view of the billiards cue, measurement device, and billiards ball;

FIG. 4 shows a block diagram of the components of the measurement device;

FIG. 5A shows and embodiment of an impact detecting circuit; and

FIG. 5B shows waveforms produced by the impact detecting circuit.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The described embodiment is a billiards device that attaches to a billiards cue and detects whether or not a player has kept his cue significantly still for a finite period of time after striking a ball. A typical billiards cue 2 is shown in FIG. 1A and consists of a tip 4, a ferrule 6, a shaft 8, a joint 10, a grip 12 and a butt 14. The exemplary device 16 shown consists of a component board 18 and a flexible rubber housing 20 in which the component board fits and slips over the butt 14 of the billiards cue. The inner diameter of the housing 20 is slightly less than the diameter of the butt 14 so that when slipped onto the butt 14, the flexibly of the housing 20 material will cause it to stretch and remain on the butt 14 by friction. The friction shall be great enough to prevent the device from falling off of the cue during use, but small enough to allow the player to easily remove the housing without significant force or without the use of a tool.

FIG. 1B shows a detailed close-up view of FIG. 1A of the butt 14 of the billiards cue 2 and the measurement device 16. The component board 18 consists of a PCB board 23 on which is mounted a power source 22, a display 24, an accelerometer 25, a microprocessor 26, an encapsulated vibration motor 27, and a signal conditioning circuit 100. According to one embodiment, the power source 22 may be a CR-2032 coin-cell battery holder, though other power sources way be employed. Display 24 may be a light-emitting diode (LED) display, though other display types may be employed. Accelerometer 25 may be an Analog Devices ADXL337 analog accelerometer or similar device. Microprocessor 26 may be a Microchip PIC16LF1825.

The housing 20 includes a bumper 29 which is a thick half-sphere of rubber designed to protect the component board 18 and billiards cue 2 from damage if the butt end of the billiards cue impacts the floor, and an aperture window 28 through which the player can see the display 24 when the component board 18 is fully inserted into the housing. An alternative embodiment may also include an audible tone generator or speaker.

The vibrational motor shall vibrate if a statistical value representing the amount of movement the billiards cue has undergone after it has impacted the cue ball exceeds a predetermined threshold. The vibrational motor may also vibrate if the amount of time since the billiards cue has last impacted the billiards ball has exceeds a predetermined threshold. Further, an alternative embodiment may exclude the vibrational motor.

The display 24 may consist of an array of colored LEDs, an LED numerical display, or other appropriate means of presenting to the player a statistical value representing the amount of movement the billiards cue has undergone after it has impacted the cue ball. The display 24 may also indicate the amount of time that has elapsed since the billiards cue last impacted the billiards ball. Further, an alternative embodiment may exclude the display 24 and aperture window 28. Alternative embodiments may include any other means of presenting statistical data to the player.

FIG. 1C shows a detailed close-up view of FIG. 1A of the butt 14 of the billiards cue 2 and the measurement device 16 from a back perspective as to show details on the other side of the components described above. A battery 30 is shown secured in the power source 22 by a spring clip 31. In one embodiment, battery 30 is a CR-2032 coin-cell lithium battery. From this view the interior 33 of the housing 20 can clearly be seen. It can also be seen that, in this embodiment, the thickness in material between the back of the housing 34 and the bumper 29 is significantly greater than the thickness of the housing wall 32.

FIG. 2 shows a detailed close-up view of the butt 14 of the billiards cue 2 and an alternative embodiment of the measurement device 17. The butt 14 of the billiards cue 2 shown in FIG. 1B has been cut away and replaced by a recess 13. The inner diameter of the recess 13 is slightly larger than the diameter of the components board 18, and the depth of the recess is comparably as deep as the height of the components board, so that the components board is completely contained within the recess when inserted into the recess. A bumper cap 21 is attached and secured over the recess 13 so that the measurement device is integrated into the handle 12 of the billiards cue 13.

FIG. 3A shows a side view of the front portion of a billiards cue 2 consisting of the tip 4, ferrule 6, and shaft 8, and its proximity to a cue ball 1 before striking the cue ball. FIG. 3B shows a perspective view from the butt end 14 of the billiards cue 2. The measurement device in this embodiment is mounted to the butt 14 of the billiards cue 2 so that from this perspective only the housing 20 and aperture window 28 are visible. Further, the player's head is placed between the shaft 8 and butt 14 so that the player does not see the measurement device while stroking the billiards cue. Therefore the measurement device does not obstruct the player's field of view in any way during the stroke.

FIG. 4 shows a general block diagram of the main components of the measurement device 16 and how they are related to each other. In certain embodiments, most or all of the components are enclosed in the housing 20. The device comprises a power source 22 that provides power to the rest of the components. The accelerometer 25 provides an output to the signal conditioning circuit 100. The signal conditioning circuit filters the analog acceleration data and provides an output to the microprocessor 26. In this embodiment, the signal conditioning circuit may also contain an impact detection circuit, which provides an output to the microprocessor 26. The microprocessor 26 provides an output to the indication system 24, which contains indicating devices such as the display 24 and vibrating motor 27 shown in FIG. 1B.

Details of one embodiment of the signal conditioning circuit 100 are shown in FIG. 5A, although different circuits may be realized in alternative embodiments. The output of the accelerometer 25 is connected to port 101. In this embodiment, the output impedance of the accelerometer is nominally 32 k′n, and the filter capacitor 102 is selected to band-limit the signal to 10 kHz. The signal is then input to a high-impedance input buffer 103 and output to both a second-order low-pass filter 114 and a second-order high-pass filter 104. The low-pass filter attenuates all frequencies above 100 Hz and then outputs 116 the filtered signal to an ADC input in the microprocessor 26. The high-pass filter attenuates all frequencies below the resonant frequency of the accelerometer, which for the ADXL337 is 5.5 kHz. The output is clipped and then rectified by diode 105, and signal current is allowed to charge capacitor 108 through the charge resistor 106. The charge is allowed to slowly drain through leakage resistor 109. The voltage on the capacitor 108 is amplified by a non-inverting amplifier 110 and band-limited by capacitor 111. The output of the amplifier is output 112 to a comparator input in the microprocessor.

Waveforms resulting from a simulation of the signal conditioning circuit 100 are shown in FIG. 5B. A sinusoid of 100 Hz was input into port 101 to simulate a player stroking the billiards cue. When the player causes the tip of the billiards cue to strike the cue ball, a shock wave is transmitted from the tip to the butt of the billiards cue and into the accelerometer causing the accelerometer to oscillate at its resonant frequency. At the time labeled ‘impact, a 5.5 kHz signal was added to port 101 for 10 cycles to simulate the accelerometer oscillating at its resonant frequency. The output of the low-pass filter 114 shows that the 5.5 kHz signal is attenuated from the signal path and the 100 Hz signal is slightly delayed 116. The output of the high-pass filter 104 shows that the 100 Hz signal is attenuated from the signal path and the 5.5 kHz signal is inverted and clipped 107. The inverted and clipped signal is rectified by diode 105, charges capacitor 108 through resistor 106, and is amplified by 110 producing the detection signal 112. This signal is input to a comparator in the microprocessor, which is also connected to a reference voltage 130. When the detection signal 112 exceeds the reference voltage 130 then an impact detection event is triggered within the microprocessor.

The impact detection event causes microprocessor to acquire acceleration data, process the acceleration data, generate statistical data, and output the statistical data to the indication system. Specifically for this embodiment, the microprocessor causes the vibrational motor to vibrate, and LED display to illuminate, if the movement of the billiards cue after impact with the cue ball exceeds a predetermined value fixed in the software. The microprocessor also causes the vibrational motor to vibrate if the time since the billiards cue last impacted the cue ball does not exceed a different predetermined value fixed in software. 

1. A measurement device (16) for analyzing a billiards shot, comprising: at least one accelerometer (25) operably secured to a billiards cue (2); a microprocessor (26) in communication with the accelerometer; and an indicator.
 2. The measurement device (16) of claim 1, further comprising a power source (22).
 3. The measurement device (16) of claim 1, further comprising a housing (20).
 4. The measurement device (16) of claim 3, wherein the accelerometer (25) and microprocessor (26) are disposed within the housing (20).
 5. The measurement device (16) of claim 4, further comprising a power source (22).
 6. The measurement device (16) of claim 1 wherein the indicator comprises a display (24).
 7. The measurement device (16) of claim 1 wherein the indicator comprises an audible tone generator or speaker.
 8. The measurement device (16) of claim 1 wherein the indicator comprises a vibration motor (27).
 9. The measurement device (16) of claim 1 wherein the indicator is enclosed within the housing (20).
 10. The measurement device (16) of claim 9 further comprising a power source (22).
 11. A method for analyzing a billiards shot, comprising: measuring the motion of a billiards cue (2) with an accelerometer (25) operably secured thereto; analyzing the motion of the billiards cue (2) with a microprocessor (26) in communication with the accelerometer; comparing the motion of the billiards cue (2) to a pattern; and generating a notification depending on whether the motion of the billiards cue (2) conforms to the pattern.
 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of providing a power source (22).
 13. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of providing a housing (20).
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the accelerometer (25) and microprocessor (26) are disposed within the housing (20).
 15. The method of claim 14, further comprising the step of providing a power source (22).
 16. The method of claim 11 wherein the notification is provided via a display (24).
 17. The method of claim 11 wherein the notification is provided via an audible tone generator or speaker.
 18. The method of claim 11 wherein the notification is provided via a vibration motor (27).
 19. The method of claim 11 wherein the notification is provided via an indicator enclosed within a housing (20).
 20. The method of claim 19 further comprising the step of providing a power source (22). 